I'm Not Offended, I Will Go Back to Georgia Again: Pozner on Incident in Tbilisi

The journalist believes that amid the desperate political struggle in Georgia, the opposition simply used his visit.

TV presenter Vladimir Pozner intends to visit Georgia again. His statement was published on the "Pozner Online" website.

"As I understand it, there is a desperate political struggle going on in Georgia, and the opposition used my visit to... I don’t even know how to call it, to organize some sort of ‘shabash’ (a term for a gathering or event in Armenian) like thing. They remembered my three-year-old statement about Abkhazia to raise their voices by throwing eggs at our bus (apparently they have enough chicken eggs), banging on the walls of our restaurant, standing under the walls of our hotel, shouting, whistling, and so forth. And I decided to leave. Why should I put my friends at risk? We returned to Moscow and celebrated my birthday very well. It was clear that the experience in Tbilisi helped us a lot, no matter how strange it may seem," said Pozner.

The broadcaster also thanked everyone who was concerned about the incident. "I don't have any feeling of being offended towards Georgia or Georgians. Moreover, I am an honorary guest, and of course, I will go back to Georgia again, that is for sure. As for the egg throwers, especially if they are getting paid for it, there are such people in every country, and as I have already written, they are not really worth paying attention to," added the well-known journalist and broadcaster.

It is recalled that Pozner traveled to Tbilisi on March 31 to celebrate his birthday there, which falls on April 1 when he turned 87. Pozner was accompanied by about 50 friends and colleagues to Georgia. He was scheduled to leave Georgia on April 3, but left the country early due to protests.

Members of the opposition and activists organized a rally to clarify whether Pozner had violated the law on occupation upon arriving in Georgia. Protesters also deemed Pozner's previous comments regarding Abkhazia unacceptable. Activists and leaders of the opposition first protested near the "Vinotel" hotel where Pozner had dined with guests. The participants eventually disrupted the dinner, reporting to the authorities that Pozner and his guests had violated the curfew in Georgia, which prohibits going out from 9 PM to 5 AM and does not allow restaurants to operate during that time.

Guests left the "Vinotel" under police escort, but the protests continued near the "Rooms" hotel, where Pozner was staying. Activists threw eggs at the building.